Itโ€™s certainly true that hen nights have moved on from an evening down the local pub with a loving gaggle of friends. These days, the bridal party can expect to be joined by almost all the girls their bride know. at a selected hen party destination. And the simple night out has evolved into an invite for an entire weekend of organised fun in local and far flung party destinations.
While we canโ€™t help you with the invite list, we can help you to decide whether to stay at home or choose a hen party destination away.
Choices To Make
Birmingham or Budapest? Mullingar or Marbella? When it comes to organising a hen party, we have a huge number of excellent destinations and activities both at home and abroad that will help to make those last nights of freedom unforgettable. Whether home for you is the UK or Ireland, we have something to offer in your backyard and abroad.
So, should you remain on home soil or jet away to an overseas hen party destination?
Whatโs A Girl To Do?
When it comes to organising activities for the group in Europe, your options are limitless: beach Olympics, casino nights, cookery classes or prosecco bike tours, cocktail making and dance classes โ€ยฆ the list goes on and on. When you take the party abroad, the sights and culture of your destination generally take over.
Organised fun at home is perfect for groups who might not know each other so well, while overseas gatherings might be better for smaller parties who donโ€™t need to bond over a lesson on how to make the perfect mojito.
Whoโs Coming?
If the brideโ€™s beloved Auntie Eileen is on the guest list alongside her party-loving office colleagues, the event can be split to accommodate two very different groups (a relaxing day do and a raucous evening out, for example). This is easy to do if you stay local in Ireland or the UK, but not so simple if you are all going abroad together.
Consider as well whether the girls in your group have small kids or commitments at home that would make it difficult for them to jet abroad for a weekend. Then again, we know some mums who would love to fly off on a break.
You could even take a quick poll to see what the majority of your hen party group members think and concoct a plan that way.
Sun, Sun, Sun
If you want guaranteed sunshine and warm weather to keep the stags or hens happy, then you might have to take this shindig outside of the UK and Irelandโ€™s unpredictable climate, though.
Cost And Commitment
Consider also that an overseas hen party destination might be viewed as more of a commitment by invitees and this could see a drastic shortening of your guest listโ€ยฆ not always a bad thing as small can be beautiful!
The Verdict
The decision is always up to your bride-to-be as itโs her big day (unless itโs a surprise โ and then kudos to you!).
Is she more of a weekend close to home with a comfortable self-catering house in Carlingford or Brighton, a movie night and a nice dinner in town kind of girl? Or is she a party-goer who would love nothing more than a beer hall romp in Berlin or a red light district adventure in Amsterdam?
You know your hen best, so choosing whether to stay at home or a hen party destination abroad, is really a question of what experience she would most love. Have a chat with her, check with the group and look for the perfect package combination on our website to make your brideโs hen party dreams come true!
Image credits: Damir Khabirov, by istockphoto
